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I. THERE IS A GREAT DEAL OF EVIL AND SINFULNESS IN SIN.

1. In the general. This may appear —

(1) By the names of sin. What evil is there but sin is invested with the name thereof? — filthiness (Ezekiel 36:25); nakedness (Revelation 3:18); blindness (Matthew 15:14); folly (Psalm 85:8); madness (Luke 15:17; Acts 26:11); death (Ephesians 2:1); an abomination (Proverbs 8:7); and because there is no word that can express the evil of sin the apostle calls it "exceeding sinful."(2) The effects of sin.

(a)  Separation from God the chief good (Isaiah 59:2).

(b)  Union to Satan (John 8:44). Sin makes us the children of the devil.

(c)  The death of Christ (2 Corinthians 5:21; 1 Peter 2:24).

(d)  A general curse upon the whole creation (Genesis 3:17).

(e)  The soiling and staining of all our glory, and the image of God in us (Romans 3:23).

(f)  Horror of conscience.

(g)  Sin is that brimstone that hell fire feeds upon to all eternity.

2. More particularly —

(1)The sin of our nature.

(a) That leprosy is worst which is most universal and over-spreading. Now sin spreads over all our faculties: our understanding, reason, will, affections.

(b) That disease is worst which is most incurable; and no human remedy has been found for sin.

(c) That is most formidable which is most unwearied, and sin is as unwearied as the fountain in sending up water.

(2) The sin of our hearts and thoughts. These are the most incurable, and are the parents of all our sinful actions (Psalm 19:12, 13). By them our former sin that was dead is revived again, and hath a resurrection by our contemplating it with delight. Thereby also a man may possibly sin that sin in effect which he never did commit in act. Thereby a man may or doth repent of his very repentance.

(3) As for the sin of our lives and practice, especially living under the gospel, the evil thereof is very great; for —

(a) Sin under the gospel is sinning against the remedy, and against the greatest obligations. By our sinning under the gospel we sin against mercy and grace, and thereby engage God, our greatest friend, to become our greatest adversary.

(b) The more repugnancy there is betwixt the sin and the sinner the greater is the sin. Now, there is a special repugnancy betwixt the gospel and a man that sins under the gospel; for he professes the contrary, and therefore sin there is the greater.

(c) The more hurtful any sin is the greater is that sin: sinning under the gospel is very hurtful to ourselves; as poison taken in something that is warm is the most venomous, so sin under the gospel is the deadliest poison, because it is warmed with gospel heat; and it is hurtful to others, because they are hardened.

(d) The more that a man casts contempt upon the great things of God by his sin the greater and worse is his sin. Sins under the gospel cast contempt upon the glory of God, the glorious offer of His grace.

(e) The more costly and chargeable any sin is the worse it is. Now, a man that sins under the gospel cannot sin at so cheap a rate as another (Luke 12:47).

II. THOUGH THERE BE THUS MUCH EVIL IN SIN, THIS DOTH NOT APPEAR TO MAN UNTIL HE TURNS UNTO GOD: till then his sin is dead, but then it is revived.

1. For —

(1) Till then a man is in the dark; and who can see the greatness of an evil in the dark?

(2) Till then, grace, the contrary, is not placed in the soul; one contrary doth show the other.

(3) And till then sin is in its own place. Water is not heavy in its own place, in the river; but take but a pailful of water out of the river and you feel the weight of it. Now, till a man turn unto God sin is in its own place, and therefore its sinfulness doth not appear.

2. But you will say, How comes this to pass?

(1) I answer, Sin is a spiritual thing; and a man that liveth by sense cannot see what is spiritual.

(2) A man is blind unto what he loves; till a man turn unto God he loves his sin, and therefore the evil of sin doth not appear.

(3) The more blinds a man hath that cover his sin the less he sees it: now, before a man turn unto God all his morality is but a blind. "True," says he, "I am a sinner; but I pray and perform duty, therefore am not so great a sinner."(4) The more a man looks upon sin the less it appears to be. There he sees profit, pleasure, and this makes his sin appear little.

(5) Sometimes by the providence of God sin meets with good events; and holiness meets with bad events in the world, and so the evil and sinfulness of sin is hidden.

(6) The less a mall is at the work of private examination the less sin appears to be sin.

III. WHEN A MAN TURNS UNTO THE LORD, THEN SIN APPEARS IN ITS SINFULNESS. For then —

1. He is weary and heavy laden under the burden of his sin; the more weary he is the more sin appears evil (Matthew 11:28).

2. Then he sees God, and not till then; the more a man sees the glory, goodness, wisdom, and holiness of God the more sin appears in its sinfulness (Isaiah 6:5; Job 42:5, 6).

3. Then a man sees Christ crucified, and not till then; and there is nothing can give us such a sight of sin as that (Romans 3:20).

4. When a man hath got the true prospect of hell, and of the wrath of God, then sin appears sinful.

5. When a man's heart is filled with the love of God, and possessed with the Holy Ghost, then sin appears to him to be very sinful (John 16:8).

(W. Bridge, M. A.)

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KJV: Was then that which is good made death unto me? God forbid. But sin, that it might appear sin, working death in me by that which is good; that sin by the commandment might become exceeding sinful.

WEB: Did then that which is good become death to me? May it never be! But sin, that it might be shown to be sin, by working death to me through that which is good; that through the commandment sin might become exceeding sinful.